After the Fact
by Alatariel4488
Summary: Hiccup's life after that fateful day seemed to take place as a series of firsts. Every event, whether he had experienced it a thousand times before or not, took on new and unexpected meaning after the Battle of the Bewilderbeast. A series of one-shots taking place after the events of How To Train Your Dragon 2. *SPOILERS*
1. First Day

***SPOILERS for How To Train Your Dragon 2***

 **Author's Note:** I've had the first few chapters of this written up and sitting in my folders for a few weeks now, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to post them since I haven't finished this story yet and I wasn't sure if I would be able to finish it. However, the new season of Race to the Edge has got me all riled up and inspired again and it seemed like the right time to post what I have and see what kind of a response I get. This is my version of what life might have been like after the events of the second movie. I have tried to keep the hopeful spirit of the movies intact, while also taking a more realistic route as far as how the characters would have reacted to such life-altering events. I hope you enjoy! And please drop me a line to let me know what you think and if you would be interested in more of these semi-connected one-shots.

 **First Day**

Berk and its people were used to rebuilding. Granted, it had been a long time since they had suffered this badly from a dragon raid, and repairing damage done by ice breath was a first for all of them. Nonetheless, everyone knew their role in helping to repair after an event of mass destruction, which meant that Hiccup was not in as tight a situation as he might have been had he just become chief of a different people. Astrid got to work almost immediately and without having to be told on digging out, rebuilding and restocking Mead Hall, since that would be the most practical place to put up both dragons and Vikings who were homeless for the time being. Fishlegs and Valka bonded within minutes of working together, unsurprisingly. They were taking care of the injured dragons, while Gothi helped with the injured Vikings. Snotlout had bullied/challenged Eret son of Eret into taking a recon flight with him around the island along with the A-team. They were keeping a lookout for any signs of Drago's fleet or Drago himself, while simultaneously enjoying themselves wholeheartedly as they watched Eret struggle to keep up with them on the back of Skullcrusher. The twins… well the twins were doing what they did best: blowing things up. Fortunately, there was an abundance of very breakable ice covering various parts of the island that really did need to be got rid of. The entire village was bursting with activity. Even the little ones had their assigned jobs well in hand, supplying water and food to the laboring workers and dragons.

That wasn't to say Hiccup didn't have his hands full. He had plenty to do, between directing different aspects of the work and helping in the actual reconstruction anywhere he could. He had also won a race, successfully delivered his first real, morale-building _speech_ to the entire tribe, and defeated a crazed, power-hungry lunatic and a dragon king. All before tea time.

After all that insanity, Hiccup had gladly transitioned back into a role that he was much more comfortable with: that of directing and helping in good old fashioned work. In fact, he was immeasurably grateful for the amount of work there was to be done that first day. He was always at his best when he was busy and building, and any distraction from the enormity of the events which had transpired within the last few hours felt heaven sent. Hiccup bounced around from one end of the village to the other all afternoon. Since Toothless seemed just as reluctant to leave his side as Hiccup was to leave his, they stuck together throughout the day, flying back and forth between one project and the next, delivering supplies, checking on status' and giving directions as necessary. As they day started to wind down though, and the red of an approaching sunset crept into the sky, Hiccup found himself being drawn back towards Gobber's forge. His mother and Fishlegs had been there most of the day, helping to unload the armored dragons before they tended to their wounds, but they had moved their operation closer to Mead Hall as the repairs on that building neared completion. So, when Toothless landed gracefully outside of the old forge, Gobber seemed to be running the place all on his own. A fact which was quickly confirmed when the old blacksmith stuck his head out of the doorway just long enough to bellow,

"'Bout time you showed up!" He ducked back inside just as quickly as he had appeared, but his thundering voice could still be heard loud and clear by the two friends as he went on. "Just because you've gone and become chief of the whole village don' think tha means you kin get out of workin' here! Ahm get'n too old to run this whole place by meself!"

"Sorry, got held up," Hiccup joked and followed his grumpy friend into the building. He turned back as a loud crash behind him brought his attention back to Toothless. The dragon was staring apologetically at the contents of a small shelf which were now strewn across the floor. Gobber gave an irritated but dismissive huff and went back to work. Hiccup walked back over to his best friend's side.

"Why don't you go take care of whatever new "alpha duties" you have to do, bud? If being an alpha is anything like being a chief then I'm sure you've got plenty to do," he smiled and placed his hand on the dragon's head. Toothless whined reluctantly and blinked up at his rider. "It's all right bud," he said as he patted Toothless on the side of the head. "There's not really much you can do here, but I should help Gobber for a while. That'll keep me busy." He smiled. Toothless nudged his hand gently and gave him a questioning look.

"I'll be fine Toothless," Hiccup reassured him and then turned to duck back into the forge where he smoothly and swiftly donned his leather apron and fell to work with the ease of someone who has done this a thousand times. Toothless lingered for a few more seconds, sniffing indecisively and watching Hiccup with an attentive gaze. But finally, he seemed to make up his mind, turned and sped swiftly away in the direction of Mead Hall. Hiccup looked up once he was gone, and suppressed a shudder, instead pressing his lips into a tight line and going back to work with renewed vigor. Gobber watched him sadly out of the corner of his eye, but the old warrior knew better than most the usefulness and necessity of work to occupy a mind that isn't ready to think about tragic events just yet. He gave Hiccup what he knew he needed most, hard work and space, but was also alert and at the ready for any change in the boy's mood.

Hiccup kept the forge lit, pounded dragon armor into useful sheets which he then supplied to Gobber for filling the orders that were coming in from across the village, and made as many rivets, nails, hammers and other small but necessary tools for reconstruction as he could. His mind was racing with lists, lists of specialty items that he would have to make himself in order to repair his various inventions and machines across the island, lists of improvements that he could make to those same inventions, and even a few new ideas that he found himself getting excited about implementing. That was always the best part about a catastrophic event: it provided a blank slate that could be built upon almost from scratch. With so many of these busy thoughts running through his brain he barely noticed the passage of time.

The sun seemed to grow distant as it sunk lazily into still, cold sea. It took with it the warm glow of day, and the space left behind filled with icy blue clouds that blocked out the light of twinkling stars. Eventually, the mounting darkness swallowed up even the light of the moon, which had been fighting valiantly to shed some illumination on the world below. Torches lit up, one after the other, around the island, and the metal clinks of hammers, the wooden thunks of axes and the chaotic bursts of dragon fire explosions from across Berk died away to be replaced by a general din of activity and community coming from the direction of Mead Hall.

Hiccup failed to notice when the number of requests and visits they were getting from the villagers died down, having become absorbed in the backlog of a list they already had to work on. It wasn't until Gobber spoke up that he really looked around him for the first time since he'd arrived at the forge.

"Weeell, I'm off to the Hall for some dinner," he announced suddenly, and the loud metal clank of his metal tongs being tossed aside nearly caused Hiccup to drop a red-hot metal rod on his good foot. "This Viking warrior-esque figure doesn't come about by chance you know. It takes hard work!" he boasted, jovially patting his overlarge and soot stained stomach with his good hand. "You should come too. When's the last time you had somethin' t'eat? Eh?"

"I don't know," Hiccup replied with a dismissive shrug, carefully placing the rod into a clamp. "But I'm not hungry yet, and I really need to finish this before the metal cools. I'll meet you up there as soon as I'm done." Gobber opened his mouth to protest, but Hiccup cut him off before he could get a word out. "And tell Toothless to come find me if you see him, I need to check his harness. It took a beating today. Probably needs some work."

"Alrigh', ah'll tell 'im. But if I know tha' dragon, he'll be back here pullin' your stubborn self up to the Hall himself before I even get up there," he said as he limped over to his interchangeable hand station and switched out his hammering attachment for his mead goblet, since that would be much more useful for eating and, more importantly, drinking than a hammer would be.

Hiccup grinned absentmindedly and muttered a distracted, "Thanks Gobber," before going back to his work. Gobber hobbled out of the forge and called out,

"Come on Grump, you big lazy butt! Wake up and give us a ride to the Hall. You know," he told Hiccup over his shoulder as the enormous dragon drug himself sleepily out of the building only to collapse again at Gobber's feet, "I'm starting to think tha' maybe it wasn't such a good idea to build the forge so far away from everythin' else on the the island. And by everythin' else, I mean the food. Grump agrees! It's an unreasonable amount of distance for an old boiler like myself to have to walk or fly just to get his well-earned meals."

"We could move it closer to the Hall," Hiccup mused. "The water tower was completely destroyed and I was thinking of rebuilding it higher up on the mountain so that we can use it for more fire prevention. That would clear up enough space for a new forge. But then we'd have to figure out how to get water to the tower, since moving it higher up would put it farther away from all of the rivers and streams."

"Never mind Hiccup!" Gobber interrupted him. "It's a matter for another day, and besides," he added, a laughing tone making its way into his voice, "You've got more important things to worry about now than an old man's lazy dragon." Hiccup's movements slowed to a stop,

"Yeah, I suppose I do," he muttered, trailing off into silence, but before Gobber could think of the right thing to say, Hiccup raised his head to meet Gobber's gaze and smiled fondly as he recited, "But no task is too small when it comes to serving your people, right?" Gobber felt his heart clench and the prickle of sudden tears welling up in his eyes.

"Aye lad," he nodded. "Couldn't have said it better myself." Hiccup smiled out of the corner of his mouth and went back to work.

"I'll think of something, don't worry. Go have dinner, I'll be up soon." The old smith mounted his slumbering dragon and took off towards Mead Hall with a heart that was both heavy and hopeful. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that that boy would make a fine chief, but his very bones ached at the thought of never seeing his best friend again. Still, there were many more friends still around him, and a few new ones to add to the list. And besides, there were much more important matters to attend to at the moment, like finding some proper ale to fill up his mug-hand with and a chicken or two to fill his other.


	2. First Night

**Author's Note:** Thanks so much for the reviews and follows and fav's everyone! It has given me the motivation to try and keep writing this story. As a thank you, here's the second chapter. I will be out of town for the next week so I won't be able to post anything for a while, but I might be able to write some more so that when I get back I'll have a few more chapters for you. Let me know what you think please! And I'm also considering taking requests for future chapters, so if you have any "First -" prompts for me, or something in particular that you would like to see, let me know and I will take it into consideration. Enjoy!

 **First Night**

When Astrid spotted Grump and Gobber shoving and barreling their way through the crowd gathered at the Great Hall and heading in the direction of the food and drink, her eyes automatically started looking for Hiccup. She knew he'd been with Gobber at the forge all evening, and had expected him to make his way up to the Hall at the same time, but when her eyes didn't spot either Hiccup or Toothless, she pushed her way through the masses of people in the direction of the old blacksmith.

"Gobber!" she shouted to him as soon as she was within earshot. "Where's Hiccup?"

"Still at the forge," he replied around a mouthful of chicken leg. "He had something to finish up, but he said he'd be coming up soon. By the way, have you seen Toothless? I was supposed to tell the beast to meet Hiccup at the forge."

"No I haven't, but I'll take Stormfly out and find him. Someone has to make sure Hiccup gets up here before too long since we all know he'll spend all night in that forge unless we drag him out of it."

"Believe me, I know," Gobber replied, slightly affronted at the implication that he would leave Hiccup to his own devices knowing full well what that might entail. "But I think you'll find yourself pleasantly surprised on this occasion. Hiccup has a responsibility to the tribe now and he knows it. He won' neglect his people by hiding away in the forge all night, I don' think." Astrid smiled softly, but her brow was furrowed in thought. She nodded to Gobber as she turned to leave.

"Maybe," she called back over her shoulder, "but I'm still gonna make sure he doesn't go and do something stupid like fly off with Toothless and disappear on us."

"Fair enough," Gobber shrugged, turning back to his meal.

Stormfly was waiting for her patiently just outside the doors and Astrid swung herself effortlessly into the saddle without a moment's hesitation. A few seconds later and they were within sight of the forge, though not much could be seen of it besides a glowing light keeping the darkness of a cloudy night at bay with pulsating warmth. She spotted Toothless on the ground outside as they got closer, and then Hiccup coming in and out of the building with different tools. Astrid and Stormfly circled once and then landed in the deserted square just outside the forge.

"Hi Astrid," Hiccup called out, which spoke volumes of his level of distraction since he usually attached some sort of flare to his greetings, whether it was an endearing nickname or an overexaggerated tone of voice.

"We've been looking for you up at the Hall," she told him as she dismounted and walked around to see what he was working on. "Everyone else is there."

"I know, sorry. I got held up," he replied, struggling with something on the part of Toothless' harness that encircled his right, front leg. "The clasp that holds Toothless' harness on over his front legs got jammed shut at some point today and I can't get it to unlock. I need to take his gear off though so I can check to make sure he's not hurt. He tends to be a bit uncommunicative in letting anyone know if he's hurt and even less cooperative in letting anyone help him if he is." Toothless grumbled in disagreement and affront, but Hiccup just smiled and kept working at the clasp.

"He's not the only one," Astrid muttered under her breath with a fond smile of her own. "Can I help with something?"

"Actually, yes." Hiccup perked up and guided her hands as he talked. "Hold this right here," he told her and then ducked back into the forge to grab something before coming back with what looked like a U-shaped pry bar, a very small and very round rock and a pair of pincers. He handed the pry bar to Astrid, and placed the rock into the pincers as he walked around to face his dragon.

"Toothless?" Hiccup prompted, and the dragon shot just enough fire onto the pebble to make it glow bright blue with heat. Hiccup then used the rock to heat up the metal of the stuck clasp which made it more malleable and therefore easier to bend back into shape without breaking it. Astrid helped shape it and pry it lose from its neighboring pieces of metal as Hiccup's steady hands maneuvered the glowing rock. It took them a few minutes, but before long, it unstuck with a satisfying _click_ and the clasp unhooked. They both huffed out a laugh or two in victory before dousing the glowing metal with water to cool it down and reharden it.

"I'll have to work on that more later," Hiccup muttered himself as he closed and reopened it a few times to check its functionality. "But this'll have to do for now. Sorry bud," he added coming around to pat Toothless on the head and speak to him eye to eye. "I need a ride up to the Hall, will you be alright if I don't take this thing off until later?" Toothless nudged Hiccup's hand and then shook himself like a dog after a bath, settling back down on his haunches afterwards with a perfectly content gleam in his eye. Hiccup smiled and patted him again in silent thanks before moving back towards Astrid to help put all of his scattered tools away.

"I'll take care of this," Astrid grabbed his hand as he reached down for a tool. "You're long past being due at the Hall. The chief is needed," she prodded gently.

"You're right," Hiccup admitted guiltily, but hesitated, putting a hand on Toothless' back and staring out across the frigid ocean. Toothless crooned softly, looking back at his rider.

"You'll do fine," Astrid reassured him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to give another speech, just… be there. Walk around, make decisions, make sure everyone is taken care of. That's what matters right now. Not big, grand speeches and actions. Not tonight. Your soldiers need reassurance and everyone else just needs rest. Just make sure they get those things." The side of Hiccup's mouth twitched into a smile.

"Thank you," he told her, half turning his head and she smiled at him.

"Go," she urged him once more. Hiccup turned around just long enough to give her a peck on the cheek and then swung himself onto Toothless' back. Astrid watched them disappear into the dark night's sky before she turned back to the mess of tools on the ground, gathered as many up as she could in one armful and ducked into the glowing doorway.

Valka heard the approach of her son's dragon before she saw him. A night fury isn't named after the night for nothing. Even on an ordinary night, the only way to spot one was if you happened to catch the swift blinking of its silhouette as it darkened the stars behind it, but on a starless night such as this, it was impossible to see it until it was practically upon you. The tell-tale whistle of air which preceded its arrival, however, was unmistakable, if you knew what to listen for. She stepped back just far enough for Toothless to land and came forward again when her son dismounted.

"Hey mom," he greeted her.

"Hiccup," she smiled and pulled him into a hug. Hiccup stiffened, but she clung to him anyway for a few seconds before he returned it awkwardly. He pulled away rather abruptly as a few bustling people passed by them on their way into the Hall, clearing his throat and running a hand through his hair in a nervous fashion.

"How is everyone?" he asked, vaguely but genuinely.

"Good. Everyone's all right. There were no serious injuries here on Berk, and all of the dragons have been seen to as well. There _are_ a few of them with injuries that will have to be carefully cared for over the next few weeks, but it's nothing we can't handle."

"Good. That's good. I need to talk to Spitelout. Find out what the status of the repairs is."

"He's inside, along with most everyone else. Even the families whose homes weren't destroyed or have already been rebuilt are still lingering inside." Hiccup nodded and moved towards the towering doors. Valka watched him closely as he stepped over the threshold, taking in a deep, slow breath as he did so. He put on a smile, and nodded to the people who regarded him respectfully as he passed, making his way confidently towards the figure of Spitelout on one end of the Hall. She followed him with her eyes while he listened to reports about the status of the reconstruction, updates from the latest patrols and generally handled matters with a caring and confident air. He looked so much like Stoic to her now that her heart ached with both pride and longing. She could see him in the way Hiccup held himself, especially when he crossed his arms over his chest with a frown of concentration. And yet, there was something so completely and uniquely Hiccup about his mannerisms. It was the way he tilted his head to the side as he listened to his friends' reports; the way he shrugged his shoulders and gestured with his hands; the half smile which could just as easily turn into a frown of concentration or frustration. She found her spirits lifting as she thought about the chance she now had to get to know her son. She could learn how to read that expressive face, and tell his moods from the way he held his shoulders. She laughed out loud when she caught the incredulous look he gave Ruffnut and Tuffnut after they told him about their "genius idea" to blow up the rest of the town since it would be a disgrace to let this opportunity for complete destruction slip away when half the work was done already.

"It! Will! BE! GLOURIOUS!" Tuffnut declared climactically, his exuberant voice carrying all the way to where she was standing, a few tables away. Without a word, Hiccup turned to Snotlout and Fishlegs and carried on with the conversation they were having about the patrols, leaving Gobber to smack the siblings upside the head. She couldn't quite tell what they were saying, but Snotlout and Fishlegs didn't look too happy about whatever Hiccup was suggesting, and when Astrid showed up, things escalated rather quickly. She made her way over to the group then, straining to hear the conversation ensuing as she got closer.

"You expect us to just go peacefully to sleep with the possibility of that monster coming back in the middle of the night!?" Astrid was exclaiming incredulously.

"Yes- No!" Hiccup let out a frustrated noise and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Astrid's right Hiccup," Fishlegs added. "We can't just leave all the dragons unprotected. For all we know, the Bewilderbeast could come right back and change his mind about the whole new alpha thing, and then we'd be waking up to all of our dragons gone and Berk completely defenseless."

"He's got a point," Gobber grumbled. "And we still have Drago's armada to worry about. We can't just trust our luck that yours and Toothless' performance scared them off for good."

"That's not what I'm suggesting at all!" Hiccup protested, flailing his arms around as he did so. "Of course we can't leave the island unprotected."

"Then what are we supposed to do?" Snotlout jeered. "Patrol in our sleep? Not that I couldn't do that, of course."

"Look," Hiccup finally said, staring down each rebellious look he was getting with firm determination. "We can't leave Berk unprotected. We have to set up _some_ kind of patrol, but all of us have also had a very, _very_ long day. None of us slept at all last night, and we wouldn't be of much use to Berk if we were falling asleep on duty, now would we?" No one could say anything to that, so he went on. "We're not the only ones who can take care of this though. We have the A team and the B team, even though they're still in training. Any of them would be better suited to keep watch tonight because they, at least, have had some sleep within the last 48 hours." Astrid hung her head in what could have been either thought or shame, and Hiccup's tone changed to a gentle and caring one. "You all did great today. Without you, we never would have been able to take back Berk. But the battle is over, at least for now, and we all know the importance of catching out breath while we can. So, just… get some sleep guys. There'll be plenty to do tomorrow." He smiled at his friends and they returned the gesture. After a moment of silence that was full of unsaid words and mutual comradery Hiccup switched back into business mode. "Now, does everyone have a place to sleep tonight?" They all nodded. "What about the rest of the tribe?"

"Between repaired homes and the space we've set up here in the Great Hall, everyone on Berk should have a good enough place for tonight," Astrid supplied.

"Good. What about Eret?"

"HE CAN SLEEP WITH ME!" Ruffnut exclaimed gleefully, and Hiccup masterfully ignored her.

"Where has he gotten to anyway?"

"Last time I saw him he was getting Skullcrusher some dinner," Snotlout told Hiccup. "He dumped almost an entire container of fish on himself in the process," he snickered and the twins joined in.

"I'll go check on him and make sure he knows where to go for the night. Mom, what about you?" Valka started at finding herself addressed. She had been hanging back, quietly and, she had thought, unobserved, watching the interactions of this tight-knit group.

"Oh, I'll just sleep with the dragons tonight. Cloudjumper makes for quite a comfortable bed," she smiled.

"Are you sure? There's plenty of room for you up at the house," Hiccup frowned.

"Yes, I'm sure," she reassured him and then laughed suddenly. "I haven't slept in a bed in twenty years. Trust me, spending the night with the dragons will be much more comfortable for me, and that way I can keep an eye on all of them."

Hiccup nodded. "Alright. Get some rest everyone. I'll see you tomorrow." And with that, he was off and marching toward his next project. The group dispersed, most of them hiding enormous yawns as they moved away from one another, and Hiccup moved towards the doors once more with Astrid close behind him.

"He's somethin' isn't'e?" Gobber asked quietly, coming up beside her as she watched him go. Valka smiled.

"Yes he is. I have a feeling he very well might come to be the best chief Berk has ever known." Gobber nodded silently behind her.

After they found Eret, instructed the A team about taking care of patrols for the night, and instructed the men back at the Hall to begin extinguishing the torches, Astrid and Hiccup met up again just outside the Hall doors.

"I think that's everything," Hiccup breathed. "You should get to bed."

"You should too," Astrid warned.

"I will, but I still have to get Toothless out of his riding gear and checked out before I head home."

"Well then I'll come with you," she declared.

"No, it's fine. I can handle it. And besides… I need you to be rested tomorrow. Something tells me that we haven't seen the last of Drago or his army." Astrid looked up at him and held his gaze for a long time. There was a pleading note in his voice, and a vulnerable look in his eyes that she could never resist or betray. After a long moment, she nodded slowly.

"Okay."

"Thank you," Hiccup smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow. Sleep good."

"You too," she answered, more in warning than in reply.

"Goodnight Astrid."

"Goodnight Hiccup." He gave her a quick kiss on the lips and then swung onto Toothless' back. They were in the air and out of sight within just a few of Astrid's foggy breaths. She turned and made her way back into the Hall. Many of the torches were already extinguished, and a hush had fallen across the island. Soft voices, something that was very rare to hear in a tribe of Vikings, echoed around the Great Hall. Astrid found an empty spot in the corner of the Hall that had been reserved for the Dragon Riders and sank down onto the floor. The rest of the team was already there, most of them asleep and snoring happily. She laid down with every intention of staying awake long enough to go check on Hiccup after a reasonable amount of time had gone by, but only a few minutes later, she did not notice when her eyes closed of their own accord, and she soon sank into a deep and exhausted sleep from which she did not wake up until the morning.


	3. First Dawn

**Author's Note:** So sorry about the long wait! I have a lot going on right now, so I haven't had much of a chance to write anything new. But here is the promised third chapter and I do have a few ideas that even involve a bit of plot for the next ones. It might be a while before I get to actually write them though, so sorry, but I will do my best. And as always, please let me know what you think! You're reviews are ultimately the main reason I decide to keep coming back to this. Thank you so much for your support so far. I hope you enjoy!

 **First Dawn**

Astrid woke with a start before the sun had even begun to show itself in the early morning sky. The first thing she noticed was how dark it was. She had always been an early riser, but it must have been earlier than even she was used to getting up because the only sign that dawn was approaching at all was a slight blue tint in the sky. Everyone else in the Hall was still asleep, some curled onto their sides and others still on their backs, snoring loudly. As she picked her way across the Viking strewn floor she tried and failed to gather her thoughts and push away the painful memories from the day before.

Stoic had always been more to her than just her chief. He'd been a second father, a mentor, a friend. The thought that she would never see him again, never again hear his booming voice calling her his "future daughter in law," or yelling at Hiccup for doing something idiotic made her ache all over. And then there was Hiccup. She couldn't even imagine what he must be going through, but despite whatever he must be feeling on the inside, he still managed to smile and lead and set the example for his people. The amount of inner strength that that must require was more impressive to her than any muscles or battle scars, and it made her love him that much more.

Astrid wasn't at all surprised to see Stormfly already waiting for her when she stepped outside of the Hall, and let out a sigh of relief and happiness at the sight of her friend, wide awake and ready to go. An early morning ride was just what she needed to clear her head and get herself ready for the new day. If Hiccup could be strong, then she could be too. It took her a few minutes to say good morning to her beautiful dragon, tightening up and checking her gear and delivering a few well-placed scratches as she did so. As soon as she was satisfied that Stormfly's riding gear was all in order and that the dragon's few, minor injuries from the day before were healing nicely, she swung herself up into the saddle and whispered,

"Let's go girl." Without a moment's hesitation, Stormfly leapt into the air and they soared into the blue-black sky, passing beneath a few twinkling stars that had made their way out from under the cover of the clouds. The air was fresh and crisp, it smelled like ice and wet wood, and Astrid drunk it in with deep breaths, letting the sting of the cold cleanse her soul. They were only half-way around the island when a bright glow from the ground caught her eye. Astrid peered down into the darkness with a frown.

"That's the forge… but Gobber never leaves it burning overnight anymore, not that brightly at least…" her eyes suddenly widened and a dawning realization caused a surge of anger to shoot through her.

"Hiccup," she hissed. "That slime sucking, irresponsible, stubborn mule!" Stormfly tilted her head upwards in question, and then downwards in curiosity. "Come on, Stormfly," Astrid told her. "Let's go knock some sense into that yak-brained hypocrite," she grumbled.

All her previous enjoyment of the morning air left her just as swiftly as Stormfly's dive towards the square. Her mind was clouded by anger and frustration now, though underneath those superficial emotions, a much deeper thread of worry turned her stomach and wrung her heart. It was nothing new for Hiccup to skip a night's sleep. It was nothing new for any of them really. The kind of lives they had all led for the past five years tended to mean interrupted sleep on a fairly regular basis. Not to mention the two weeks out of the year when they had a midnight sun. But Hiccup himself had told all of them to get some sleep last night for very good reasons. Apparently, he felt that the same reasons didn't apply to him, and Astrid was going to make certain that he understood just how idiotic and hypocritical that was.

As they got closer and the building came into focus, she could see the light from inside pouring out into the still dark square. She also spotted Toothless, sitting just outside one of the doors, his eyes glued to whatever scene was transpiring inside. When they landed, his head turned towards her, but he remained rooted in place, a faithful and loyal guardian. There was a sad look in his eyes but Astrid didn't pay it much attention as she hurried over to the closest entrance.

"Hiccup!" she bellowed and heard a crash from somewhere inside. "You are dead, do you hear me!?" She was completely startled when Hiccup practically jumped in front of her just as she was stepping through the door, shouting,

"Heeeey! Astrid!" With a startled cry, Astrid's right fist snapped upwards and outwards and she punched Hiccup square on the jaw. It was completely involuntary and entirely instinctive, but she also didn't regret it one bit. Hiccup staggered and almost collapsed entirely with a startled and very unmanly yelp of pain.

"What was that for!?" he shouted, a genuine note of anger tinting his voice as he slowly regained his footing and rubbed his chin ruefully.

"That! Was for scaring me!" she shouted back, and then proceeded to punch him again, in the shoulder this time. "And that! Is for not taking your own advice you yak-brained, worm-eating hypocrite!" Hiccup's expression turned to one of annoyed frustration as he rolled his shoulder and his eyes.

"I know, I'm sorry," he grumbled, turning around to head back inside the forge. "I just lost track of time, that's all."

"Don't you walk away from me!" Before he could get away from her, Astrid grabbed hold of the edge of Hiccup's shoulder armor and yanked him back with enough force to knock him flat on his back.

"Ooow! Enough! With the violence thing!" That tint of anger was back in his voice again, but it was a low growl from Toothless that really caught Astrid's attention and snapped her out of her blind fury. She turned to see Toothless staring her down in a way that wasn't menacing, but it was certainly warning. Hiccup used her distraction to pick himself up off the floor and make his way as far away from her as possible. Astrid forced herself to take a calming breath, and for the first time, really looked around at the state of the place, and at Hiccup. The forge itself was lit and burning at a low but hot level. The tables and work areas were littered with tools and drawings even more so than usual, every surface covered in something or other. Hiccup didn't look much better than the building. He was covered in soot and grime from head to toe, sweating despite the chill of the outside world and his hair was sticking in every direction and as filthy as the rest of him, no doubt from having been repeatedly pushed out of his face by blackened hands. Despite the obvious temperature discomfort, he hadn't taken off any of his armor except his hand guards, and he was already returning to some scribble or other to make adjustments and annotations to whatever he had been working on. Astrid sighed,

"Hiccup," she began, both apologetic and not. "You said it yourself. We _all_ had an exhausting last few days and we _all_ needed the rest to be able to be of help. You won't be much use as a chief if you're dead on your feet!"

"I know, Astrid," Hiccup replied. He looked up at her seriously, his hand stilled over the paper he had been working on. "I just," he dropped his gaze abruptly and she saw him press his lips tightly together and swallow hard. "I just couldn't bring myself to go home and face the…" he trailed off, struggling to find the right word. "The quiet," he finally whispered. Astrid's chest thrummed with pain and she felt a few tears trying to wriggle their way out of her eyes. Hiccup was fighting tears too, she could tell. His hands were clenched tightly, and his face, though he had ducked it down and away from her again, was drawn and tense. Toothless moved across the room, silently threading his way through the mess of metal and leather and gently nosed his rider's hand. Hiccup limply allowed his hand to be nuzzled, but didn't move until Astrid put a hand on his shoulder. He slumped forwards then, his whole frame seeming to unravel as he slowly lowered his forehead to rest on top of Toothless' head.

"You could have slept in the Hall with us," she replied gently. "There was plenty of room..."

"I know," Hiccup sniffed and lifted his head slightly. "But I really did need to get Toothless checked out, and by the time I was done with that almost everyone was already asleep." Toothless raised his head along with Hiccup and Hiccup ran his hand gently along his dragon's face as he went on. "I didn't want to wake anyone up and that clasp on his gear needed more work and so did a few of the other projects that I hadn't had a chance to finish up, and one thing led to another and I really did lose track of time." He turned to look at her. His grime and sweat stained face had a single clean tear track on it, under his right eye. Astrid sighed, but she couldn't think of anything to say. She didn't know what the right thing to say was. So, she just dropped her head onto Hiccup's shoulder and shared his silence for a while. They stared out at the fading stars, watching as the blue night turned to grey twilight and the dim outlines of ice covered buildings and scaffolding slowly started to take shape. The wind started to pick up along with the light, causing the air to lose its stillness and solitude to be replaced by the restless feel of a full day about to begin. The bird songs were the first to break the silence, followed shortly thereafter by dragon snores, a sure sign that they were close to awakening.

"It's almost dawn," Hiccup finally said, inhaling deeply. "Everyone else will be up soon, and I need to check in with the A team, find out if they saw anything during the night."

"I'll do that," Astrid stated in a matter-of-fact voice. "You need to get cleaned up. You look worse than Gobber on bath day," she jibed and was relieved to see and hear a chuckle from Hiccup as he looked down and regarded himself.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he smiled. "I'll head to the beach. I think Gustav was stationed down there. I'll check in with him and make myself look somewhat presentable and then Toothless and I will meet you and the rest of the A team back at Mead Hall."

"Okay." Hiccup crossed to the other side of the table, collecting his hand guards as he went and then fiddling with Toothless' harness to make sure it was all in order. "Hiccup," Astrid hesitated; he looked back at her. "Are you sure you'll be alright?" she finally asked, watching him carefully.

"I'll be fine," he smiled reassuringly at her. "I've gotten by on a lot less sleep for a lot longer before so you don't have to worry about me taking a nose dive off of Toothless' back in mid-air or something." Toothless smacked him playfully with his ear as Hiccup moved around to the other side of him. "Ow! Unthankful beast…"

Astrid chuckled softly at the familiar exchange. Whatever else had happened, she was thankful beyond measure that Hiccup had been able to get Toothless back. She didn't want to think about what might have happened to them all if he hadn't.

"I'll see you at the Hall then," she called as she made her way outside to where Stormfly was patiently waiting for her.

"See ya!" Hiccup called back. Astrid took off to go round up the members of the night watch with a lot of things running through her mind. It would no doubt be another busy day today, and she supposed that was a good thing. They all needed the work and sense of purpose to keep them going and keep them distracted from darker thoughts. But as she flew, she made a mental note to discreetly enlist the help of Gobber and maybe Valka at some point during the day in keeping an eye on Hiccup. She couldn't watch him all day, but between the three of them they should at least be able to make sure that he was taking care of himself. She sighed, only a son of Stoic the Vast would be so stubborn that three people had to work together just to make sure he got enough sleep…


	4. First Flight

**Author's Note:** Hello again! I am _so_ sorry for how long it took me to get back to this story. Real life doesn't really make it easy to find time for writing... But all of your wonderful reviews and favorites and follows were what motivated me to keep going with it, so thank you! You have yourselves to thank for this next installment : ).

When I first started this story, I had intended it to be more of a series of unrelated one-shots having to do with Hiccup coming to terms with Stoic's death, but as I've been going along, a plot has actually developed, the beginnings of which appear in this chapter, so bear with me as I figure out where this story is going. I might even wind up changing the whole premise of a "series of firsts" but for now, it's still working and it's providing me with inspiration, so I'll have to see how it goes. And for those of you who are angst lovers like me, don't worry, there is plenty of that in store as well... ehehehehe

As always, please let me know what you think! I could really use some constructive criticism, especially on this chapter since it kind of came out of nowhere as I was writing it, and I haven't been able to find someone to proof-read/beta it for me. I've also never really written an actual plot before, so any tips and suggestions would be more than appreciated.

Anyways, enough of my ramblings! Enjoy!

 **First Flight**

Hiccup and Toothless tore through the air at speeds that any sane person would consider suicidal. To Hiccup though, it was an easy cruising speed. He could fly this route in his sleep, and Toothless could fly it blindfolded. He smiled to himself at the memory, relaxing into the flight. There really was nothing in the world that could clear his mind like flying with his best friend. They cut a single track through the clouds, in tune to each other's every breath. As they did so, the wind howled and screamed at Hiccup from outside the shelter of his helmet, but inside only the noise could reach him. His smile faded as he reflected on how accurate a description that was for his current state of mind. It felt like the world and the hours were screaming past him while he was trapped inside a hollow casing of disbelief and denial, untouched by any of the events which transpired around him. He knew the facts. He knew that yesterday morning, his father had been killed, that he would never see him again, that it had been the very friend he had believed incapable of ever betraying him who had murdered him. But today it was just another day on Berk. The sun had finally risen above the waves of the sea and the glint of its light across the vast ocean made him squint his eyes. There were birds and dragons flying above and below him. He was gliding through the air, unharmed, uninjured, untouched by the events of only a day ago. It couldn't possibly be true. It wasn't right. In that moment, suspended in flight, Hiccup felt sure that if he returned to the Great Hall, he would land to the sight of his father storming up to him and demanding an explanation for the destruction that had ravaged the island. He would step down from Toothless' saddle and cringe away from that towering figure while he tried to explain how it wasn't his fault. Maybe his dad would take it easy on him since he _had_ managed to defeat the one and only Drago Bludvist. Maybe instead of shouting at him with a disappointed scowl, Stoic the Vast would laugh that booming, hearty laugh of his and give him a painful swat on the back.

A sudden updraft caught Hiccup off-guard, he didn't adjust Toothless' tail in time, and they jerked violently upwards and to the left. Hiccup grunted and tipped his foot, correcting their flight path with a full spin and then leveled them out. He took a deep breath, trying to bring his adrenaline spiked heartbeat back under control, and really looked around himself as he did so. And then he did a double take, sitting up straight in the saddle and peering all around at the vast, endless sea which spread out around him in every direction. Toothless peered guiltily up at him.

"Toothless!" Hiccup scolded in an exasperated tone. "We're supposed to be heading toward the beach." He gestured behind them, since apparently his dragon had taken his lapse in concentration as permission to fly them straight out to sea. Said dragon grumbled and rolled his eyes as if saying, _It's not my fault you weren't paying attention_. Hiccup sighed heavily but didn't retaliate. He was too tired to argue. Let alone argue with a dragon. He simply flicked his foot and leaned to the left,

"Come on," he sighed. "We better get back before Astrid comes after us with murder in her axe..." He missed the brief, worried glance that Toothless gave him. He was too busy squinting at something small and dark to the west that had caught his eye. "Hold on Toothless," Hiccup mumbled, slowing them down and turning towards the ominous shadow on the horizon. "What's that?" He felt Toothless rumble warily beneath him. "Yeah, I don't like the looks of it either. What do you say we get a closer look?"

Valka looked up from the dragon she was tending to at the sound of a commotion from the direction of Meade Hall. A group of dragons were landing and their riders disembarking to join a growing crowd that was assembling at the foot of the stairs. She surmised that they must be the A team she had been hearing about and had her theory confirmed when she saw Astrid and Stormfly land shortly afterwards. By the time she had wrapped up with the injured Snafflefang and made her way to the square, there was quite a crowd and an accompanying commotion.

"Valka!" she turned towards the sound of someone calling her name to see Astrid making her way towards her. "Have you seen Hiccup?"

"No," she shook her head. "Not since last night. Why? Is something wrong?" A knot of dread and fear congealed in her stomach before she even had time to form a panicked thought.

"I don't know. He told me this morning that he was going to fetch Gustav and meet me here after I rounded up the rest of the A team," Astrid informed her and Valka relaxed a fraction. At least he hadn't been missing since the night before like she had assumed.

"He's probably just running late, Astrid," she reasoned.

"Probably," Astrid echoed with a tilt of her head. "I did tell him to clean himself up before he came back, since he was covered in grime and soot from working in the forge all night."

"All night?" Valka frowned. "He didn't follow his own advice then." Astrid scowled.

"No," she grumbled, "And I need to talk to you about that actually, but it'll have to wait. Gustav just got here," Astrid gestured behind her to a tall, spindly lad whose Monstrous Nightmare had just accidentally caught a sheep on fire. Valka watched with distracted humor as Gustav chased the panicking sheep around and through the crowds with a bucket of water that eventually wound up more on him and his dragon than on the poor sheep. Astrid hadn't even given the scene a second glance. "He says he hasn't seen Hiccup all morning." Valka frowned worriedly, her attention now fully back on Astrid. "I was just about to go look for him when I saw you. Could you do me a favor and stick close, in case he comes back while I'm gone?"

"No, I'll go after Hiccup," Valka put out a hand both to stop Astrid from mounting Stormfly and to call Cloudjumper to her. "It's better if you stay here," she nodded towards the assembly of rowdy Vikings in way of explanation. Astrid looked like she wanted to argue, but she nodded after a moment and Valka climbed up onto Cloudjumper's back as the dragon landed beside her. Before she could take off however, her ears picked up on that tell-tale whistle of air and all heads turned simultaneously towards the dark silhouette speeding towards them from above. A moment later, Toothless landed right beside them and Hiccup dismounted, removing his helmet to reveal a sweat and grime stained frown.

"Hiccup! Where have you been? I thought I told you to go clean yourself up!" Astrid scolded him before he even managed to take a breath.

"We need to talk," was all he said in response, and something in his tone of voice and manner instantly silenced Astrid.

"What is it?" Valka asked, her worry bleeding its way into her voice. Hiccup seemed to wage an inner battle as he looked around them at the already murmuring crowd of Vikings. Valka understood his concern. Whatever it was he had to tell them was serious, and Hiccup probably wasn't used to conveying serious information to an entire tribe of Vikings. It would be a lot easier to gather up his closest friends and allies and hash out a plan before informing the rest of the village, but most of the crowd surrounding them had already heard enough to make them curious and nervous, and a private conference involving only the new chief's trusted few would probably only make matters worse. After a long moment of deliberation, Hiccup seemed to come to the same conclusion, because he turned to face them fully and spoke up in a firm, matter of fact, tone of voice.

"Drago's army is heading for Berk." A wave of gasps and exclamations surged through the crowd and then subsided into silence as Hiccup continued. As he did so, Valka watched his friends not-so-subtly push their way through the crowd to stand in a semi-circle around Hiccup. He directed the information to them primarily, but his eyes strayed to the rest of the tribe from time to time. "I spotted them about 20 miles out from the western shore. I couldn't get close enough without being spotted to see if Drago was with them, but there were no signs of the Bewilderbeast, so I guess that's good news. Looks like you scared him away for good, eh Toothless?" He smiled back at his friend and the dragon snorted proudly.

"How long until they reach the island?" Astrid asked.

"About an hour, but they're not going to make it to Berk," he stated firmly.

"You want to engage them out at sea?" a disbelieving Eret spoke up. His protest stirred up a wave of similar expressions from the crowd. Hiccup turned and raised his voice to be heard above the noise.

"It's our best shot by far. Berk is in no condition to withstand another attack," the murmurs died down as people looked around them at the mounds of ice covered ruins. "And besides," Hiccup went on, "this way we'll have the advantage; they'll be out in the open without anywhere to run. We've done this kind of thing a million times before."

"Not against Drago's army!" Eret insisted. "You saw how well it went last time you tried to take them on!" Hiccup froze, fists clenched, and a shocked murmur echoed around the square. Every one of Hiccup's team looked like they were a heartbeat away from pummeling the newcomer into the ground. All except for Astrid. She looked like she was going to straight up murder him. Toothless had the same idea. Eret took one look at them all and had the brains to take a step back in fear.

Valka was watching Hiccup. She saw him take a deep, slow and painfully controlled breath before letting it back out in the same manner. He unclenched one of his hands and placed it placatingly on Toothless' side before turning to face Eret fully. His expression was walled off and neutral, but she could see the boiling anger behind his eyes being kept tightly in check.

" _Last_ time we were unprepared, and we were up against a _dragon_ army, with a _madman_ calling the shots and a _Bewilderbeast_ for backup. This time, _we'll_ be the ones taking them by surprise and we have the _combined_ forces of our dragons and theirs, not to mention our very own alpha. We also have not one, but _two_ teams of dragon riders who have become experts at open sea warfare in the last fear years, and you have _me_ calling the shots. Me, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, dragon master, Chief of Berk, _son_ of Stoic the Vast." Astrid, Fishlegs, Snotlout and the Twins all had matching smirks on their faces now. The crowd had gone deadly silent and Hiccup stared down a very scolded looking Eret. Everyone held their breath, waiting for Hiccup's next move. Then, from the very back of the crowd, Valka heard the unmistakable bellow of Gobber,

"LET'S GET 'EM CHIEF!" the crowd followed his lead, erupting into a deafening cheer, and Hiccup jumped slightly, startled out of his staring contest. He recovered quickly though, turning in a slow circle to absorb and take in the rowdy war cries and cheers. At the first sign of a lull in the noise, he turned to Toothless and the dragon shot a plasma blast into the air, effectively silencing the din so that Hiccup could be heard again.

"We need to move fast! I want every dragon rider ready and in the air in 10 minutes! Mom!" Valka stepped forward obediently and beaming with pride, "Round up every dragon you can find that's well enough to fight and meet us on the west beach."

"Got it," she nodded, already turning towards Cloudjumper. As her dragon took off and flew away, she watched Hiccup continue giving orders to his riders and the rest of the tribe. Individuals and groups peeled off in swift succession, with only the occasional, unavoidable, Viking-esque protest. But Hiccup handled them all without breaking a sweat. She smiled to herself. Whether he realized it or not, Hiccup was a natural leader, and he was fast becoming a chief that his father would have been proud of.


	5. First Battle

**Author's Note:** I'd apologize and give you all a lengthy explanation about where I've been and why I haven't updated this story in so long, but I know you probably don't care and just want to get to the new chapter, so here ya go!

 **First Battle**

Nervous dragon squawks and the sound of wind being batted back and forth between five sets of powerful wings filled the early morning air. Between the noise though, a tense silence hovered just as steadily as the dragons and their riders. Hiccup and Toothless stood at the front of the group on the closest sea stack. The horizon was dotted with dozens more, growing closer and closer together as they stretched out beyond sight. It was in that direction that all eyes and ears were turned. Hiccup screwed one eye shut and looked through his spy glass for the fourth time.

"Any sign of 'em?" Gobber piped up from behind him. Gobber and his dragon shared the small stretch of land with Hiccup and Toothless since Grump was without a doubt the worst hoverer on Berk.

"No, not yet," Hiccup answered, peering through the spyglass. He was so intent on catching a glimpse of Astrid that he didn't even register the sound of Hookfang's wings until the dragon was right on top of him. Literally. Snotlout and Hookfang came crashing down on them, filling up whatever space was left on the tiny sea stack and draping the rest of themselves on top of the previous occupants.

"Snotlout!" Hiccup shouted indignantly, trying to stand up underneath one of Hookfang's wings.

"What!?" Snotlout protested. "We've been hovering here _forever_ and Hookfang was getting tired." Hiccup growled in annoyance. "We can't be tired if we're about to go fight a battle! Why are we even waiting anyway? We could have beaten the whole armada by now if we'd just flown straight out there!"

"Because," Hiccup explained, finally managing to regain his footing and gazing out at the horizon once more. "We have got to time this perfectly. We need the cover of the sea stacks to be able to take on a fleet this big and if we don't engage them at just the right time, we'll miss our window."

"Window? What window? We're in the middle of the ocean!" Tuffnut chimed in, while looking around confusedly.

"He means window of opportunity, Tuffnut," Fishlegs supplied.

"Well that's a stupid expression. What kind of an opportunity is a window? You can't do anything with it. It just sits there, stuck in the wall, letting air in and out. Although I guess it could be an opportunity for a dragon to fly in and steal a priceless family heirloom."

"Or for a burglar to break in and get a snack," Ruffnut continued.

"OR! For a prankster to set up a trap! I take it back. Window of opportunity is a fantastic expression! I can't believe I didn't think of it. The opportunities of windows are endless…" He trailed off with a mischievous glint in his eye that was matched by his sister. Valka was the only one to react to the banter, her light giggles danced through the air and made Hiccup look away from the horizon for a moment.

"Well you two haven't changed one bit," she said with a twinkle in her eye. "You've been causing trouble since before you could crawl."

"You have no idea," Hiccup drawled, smiling up at her before returning to his vigil. The twins opened their mouths to protest but before they could even make a sound Hiccup called out, "There!" He pointed to a small dot that was just beginning to take the shape of Astrid and Stormfly in the distance. Snotlout and Hookfang shot back into the air without having to be told and Hiccup mounted Toothless to make whatever room he could for Astrid. A few seconds later Stormfly alighted on the rock with a squawk of greeting.

"The very first ships are just starting to enter the outermost sea stacks now," Astrid reported. "And it looks like we have a bit of luck on our side. Our last battle must have knocked out quite a few of their ships because there's significantly less of them this time. I had to stay above the clouds to make sure they didn't spot us so I couldn't see much, but we already know they're heavily armed. We're not gonna be able to win this one with just a little luck Hiccup."

"I know. That's why we have to stick to the plan. Is everyone ready?"

A chorus of "Bring it on!" "Ready and waiting!" "Yeah baby!" "Aye, aye chief!" and several other affirmative noises, both dragon and human alike greeted him in response. Hiccup smiled.

"All right then, let's do this," he said, patting his dragon on the head. Toothless eye's narrowed on the horizon and he snorted emphatically. "Fishlegs!"

"On it!" Fishlegs replied, turning in a semi-circle and releasing the small Terrible Terror that he had been holding. It took off like a shot back towards Berk just as Toothless launched forwards in the opposite direction. The rest of the dragon riders dove and then flew up behind him, picking up speed with each giant swat of their wings. They weaved in and around the pillars of rock seamlessly, flying in tight formation behind Hiccup and Toothless. For the first time in his life Hiccup found himself wishing for worse weather. If there had been even a slight fog it might have been able to give them some more cover. But the sun was shining brightly in the sky, and the only clouds in sight were far above them. They'd have to get creative if they wanted to come upon the armada of ships unnoticed.

"Hiccup!" Astrid called out, and just as abruptly as they had started, all seven riders jolted to a stop and took cover behind the closest sea stack. In the distance, the very first ships were coming into view.

"Okay everyone, time to disappear," he instructed. "Snotlout, Fishlegs, Ruff and Tuff, you know what to do."

"Oh, we know…" Snotlout grumbled, "but I still don't see why _I_ have to be the one to-"

"Just stick to the plan!" Hiccup cut off his complaining.

Without another word Toothless, Stormfly, Cloudjumper and Grump all launched upwards and headed for the cloud cover. Hookfang and Meatlug started to weave forwards slowly, Snotlout's grumbling fading into concentration as they dodged from behind one pile of rocks to another. When Hiccup glanced down, he caught just a glimpse of Barf and Belch's tail as they disappeared between the thickening mass of sea stacks. "Here we go…" he whispered to himself and his friend.

They climbed until they were engulfed in the clouds and then darted forwards with their eyes peeled to catch any glimpse they could of the water beneath them. Valka pulled up first, the massive wings of her dragon creating a swirling puff of clouds that surround the rest of them as they all stopped and started hovering again. While they waited, Hiccup studied the ranks or ships below them. Astrid was right, it was hard to see exactly was what happening below. Cloud cover meant that their enemies would have a harder time spotting them, but it also meant that they would have a hard time scoping out their enemies. But he could see enough to have an idea of what they were up against.

Hundreds of ships were slowly weaving their way through the maze of rock in front of them. They had spread out into a long line several dozen ships deep. The smaller ships were leading the pack, finding the best routes through the maze, while the bigger one chugged along at the back of the pack, carefully following the course laid out for them. There was no clear flagship, but Hiccup spotted the man who seemed to be leading the fleet. He was big, not as big as Drago or Stoic, but at least twice Hiccup's size, and he had the same dark skin and hair that Drago had. Before Hiccup could make out much more, a swat of Toothless' wings brought in a cloud that obscured his vision. Thankfully, their signal didn't depend on the sense of sight. Snotlout's scream was an unmistakable cacophony that could have been heard from miles around, and it was soon joined by Fishleg's only slightly less piercing squealing.

"Now!" Hiccup shouted, and the four riders shot down one by one in a free fall towards the mass of ships that were now directly beneath them. More sounds of fighting and shouting started rising up to meet him, growing louder and louder with each second. The wind also screamed past his face as their speed continued to increase and he had just enough time to wish he hadn't left his helmet on his mother's island before he flicked his foot and they pulled up just before hitting the water. A wave sprung up in their wake as they screamed across the surface of the water, dodging only two or three sea stacks before they started dodging ships. "Toothless! Plasma blast!" Hiccup shouted above the sound of the wind and the shouting now ringing out above them on the decks of the ships.

An explosion burst out as Toothless shot right through the bottom of one of the ships and the next instant the air filled with sounds of chaos and confusion. The men and women aboard the ships starting shouting orders and profanities. Explosions and blasts of dragon fire punctuated each passing second, and shrapnel joined the hail of arrows and nets flying through the air. His team spun and twisted and shot their way through expertly, each of them cutting a line straight through the wall of ships.

Astrid pulled the same trick as Hiccup did and pulled up at the very last second from her free fall, using her momentum to carry her right through the space between ships, shooting spine and flames as she went. Valka and Cloudjumper landed heavily on one of the bigger ships. Valka dismounted, took out the captain and several crew members, snipped the main sail and landed back on Cloudjumper's back in what seemed like one fluid motion. Cloudjumper then took back to the sky, ripping a giant harpoon off the deck of the ship and depositing it in the ocean as he went. Grump and Gobber had a slightly different approach. They came screaming down from above and barely even slowed down enough for Gobber to launch himself off Grump's back and onto a ship while Grump simply crashed straight down and through another one. By the time he reemerged through the massive hole in the now-sinking ship, Gobber had snatched a few extra weapons and jumped back on after which they advanced, chopping and smashing their way straight through the masts of the ships. By now, Snotlout and Fishlegs had served their purpose as a distraction and were joining in the carnage in their own lanes. Sails in flames and streams of lava dotted the ships in their wake. Unsurprisingly, the most destruction came from the twins' lane, though it was the last to explode. One long line of Zippleback gas stretched out sneakily from the front of the line of ships and was making its way to the very back completely unnoticed. Hiccup and Toothless shot out from between the last ships and flew quickly out of range of the volley of arrows that were following them. They turned around just in time to see a massive explosion tear its way right down the middle of the armada, lighting up like a gunpowder trail on steroids. Two maniacally laughing twins followed shortly thereafter and before the smoke had even begun to clear Hiccup signaled his dragon and Toothless shot a single plasma blast up into midair. It exploded outwards in a brilliant purple ring as the rest of his riders joined him on the opposite side of the fleet of ships.

"Do you think we got their attention?" he asked mockingly.

"Uhm, Hiccup!?" Fishlegs' high pitched voice made him turn his head just in time to see a heavily armored ship launch a giant harpoon their way. They did a barrel roll just in time to avoid being skewered.

"Yup! Definitely got their attention!" Snotlout shouted, dodging a massive boulder.

"Is that the best you can do!?" a dark and snarling man bellowed at them, and Hiccup looked back to see a mass of laughing, taunting faces. His gaze swept upwards to survey the damage. There were a few fires and signs of destruction dotted across the fleet, but their best full-frontal attack had barely made a dent in the massive army. The man he had spotted earlier pushed his way forwards and addressed the dragon riders with a sneer,

"Did you really think you could take on an entire army with just seven dragons?" a chorus of laughter filled their ears. Hiccup's eyes frantically swept across the ships and out towards the sea stacks behind them. His heart started to beat painfully fast in his chest, panic rising.

Then, he spotted what he was looking for. The answer to the signal blast Toothless had shot into the air a few moments ago. He smirked.

"Not really!" he called back and with perfect dramatic timing, a shout of "Dragon riders incoming!" rang out from the other end of the fleet followed not a beat later by three successive explosions. A war cry washed over their ears as the rest of Berk's dragon riders, led by the A team, started bombing from behind and above the ships.

"Snotlout! Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!" followed by more battle cries joined the chorus of angry Viking voices as Hiccup and his gang attacked once more from their end.

"Take out their weapons!" Hiccup shouted as loud as he could, but he didn't need to. The riders from Berk were already shattering crossbows, harpoons, balistas, canons and anything else within sight. It was chaos again, but Hiccup and Toothless cut through it smoothly, using the sea stacks and other ships as cover from the constant barrage of arrows, boulders and dragon traps. It wasn't easy though. In fact, it was some of the most difficult maneuvering Hiccup had ever faced, and his heart sank as he caught sight of several riders going down under the heavy fire.

"Hiccup!" he heard Astrid call, and saw Stormfly burn though a net just barely in time to avoid being snatched up by it. "Hiccup, this isn't working! These weapons are reinforced with steel and dragon proof armor and Stormfly is getting close to her shot limit! We need more firepower!"

"Just hold on a little bit longer!" he called back as Toothless shot a blast into the deck beside a net shooter. The reinforced weapon wasn't even singed, but floor dropped out from under it and it sent one final net shooting out across the ship to envelope most of the crew before sinking uselessly below deck. They were forced apart the next moment by a volley of flaming arrows which came at them from out of nowhere.

"Toothless! Get us out of range!" he called out and the dragon shot upwards and away from the battle below. Once they were safely out of range, Hiccup took a moment to survey the scene beneath him. There was a bigger dent in the fleet than there had been before, but they were still not even close to victory. In fact, as he watched, two more riders were shot down and several others were being forced to retreat out of range. Most of his team were already out of shots and doing their best to improvise without the firepower of their dragons. "All right Toothless, ready or not, we're out of time. Let's call in our backup." His dragon glanced up at him briefly before opening his mouth wide. Hiccup covered his ears just before Toothless' roar burst out across the water. Every eye turned up towards them in shock for a brief moment, but before his roar had even subsided, the battle was back on at full rage. Hiccup and Toothless waited tensely, hovering above the chaos below and watching the horizon for what felt like the hundredth time that morning. Astrid joined them a few seconds later, her face smeared with smoke and her axe covered in splinters.

"This better work…" she stated with a worried frown. Toothless snorted indignantly and then roared again, catching them all by surprise. Hiccup had shut his eyes in shock but before he could even recover and open them again, he felt his dragon bark with joy beneath him. He opened his eyes.

"Atta boy Toothless!" he laughed and Astrid's whoop of joy was joined by dozens more from below them as the riders caught sight of the massive flock of dragons that were swallowing up the horizon from the direction of Berk. To his delight, Hiccup heard startled and panicked cries of "Retreat!" bellowed form the decks of several ships. He tilted Toothless' tail and dove back down towards the battle.

"All dragon riders! Fall back! Do not let them escape! Fall back to their rear!" And within just a few minutes, Drago's fleet found itself stuck in between a line of Berk's best dragon riders on one side and an incoming swarm of wild dragons on the other. Panic swept through the army, along with confusion and disbelief. Hiccup flew Toothless to the front of the line of dragon riders and he caught a glimpse of his mother sweeping around the edge of the fleet to meet the wild dragons which were about to descend into the sea stacks on the other side. Something caught his eye on Toothless' back and he grinned at the bright blue glow that was shining through his dragon's scales.

"THIS!" he called out, catching the attention of the giant brute from before who seemed to be acting as the fleet's leader. "This is the best we can do!" he smirked. The man said nothing, he just glared at the smug faces which now surrounded him. The army of wild dragons on the opposite side of the fleet had stopped just outside of range from the front line of ships, with Valka and Cloudjumper holding them back. "You're surrounded," Hiccup began, "outnumbered, Drago is dead!" a murmur went through the army and Hiccup let that sink in for a moment before continuing. "You've got no giant Bewilderbeast to protect you anymore _and_ there's a new alpha in charge," he gestured towards Toothless' snarling face and the dragon let out another impressive roar. He was answered by every single dragon surrounding them and even the towering leader of Drago's army, turned in an unsteady circle at the explosion of sound that vibrated across the water and the fleet.

Once the deafening chorus of snarls and roars had subsided, Hiccup went on. "Go home! Go back North to wherever it is you came from! Whatever dreams of conquering this archipelago that you and Drago had are dead! We're the ones with the dragon army now! And we're not going anywhere!" This time, it was a chorus of Viking shouts that punctuated his words.

"Very impressive Hiccup Haddock," the man snarled up at him. "Krogan was right about you." Hiccup nearly jumped in surprise.

"Krogan…" he glanced back at Astrid and saw the rest of the Dragon Riders perk up in surprise.

"Yeees... Good old Krogan. You know, he tried to talk his way out of his execution by claiming that we'd need his help, his expertise to defeat you. 'Don't underestimate that skinny twig of a dragon rider,' he said." The man chuckled. "I guess he was right." Hiccup glared angrily down at him.

"You should have taken his advice."

"Hiccup," Astrid hissed from behind him, "I don't like the sound of this. We need to end this. Now."

"D'you know what else he was right about?" Toothless growled beneath him and Hiccup felt his skin begin to crawl. Astrid was right. Something didn't feel right. "He said you were extremely clever and very hard to fool. But you are much too easy to stall, especially if I could get you talking…"

Hiccup felt his blood run cold, and then several things happened all at once. His mother shouted something at them, but he couldn't hear her over unmistakable whistle of an arrow racing towards him from behind. Instinct born of years of battle took over and he and Toothless spun violently to the left. He heard Astrid call out his name. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a whole line of brand new ships coming towards them from behind. And then a violent spasm of pain smashed into his shoulder and nearly knocked him out of his saddle. They had dodged the arrow and spun right into the path of a pumpkin sized boulder. He cried out and grabbed desperately for a handhold as him and Toothless began to plummet towards the sea. Through a haze, he managed to right himself and readjust Toothless tail fin just enough to avoid hitting the water, but the sudden jolt knocked the air out of him and made his head start spinning. He had just enough time and sense left to lock Toothless' tail into the open position before they crash landed right on the deck of the ship from which the leader of Drago's army had been taunting them. Hiccup was thrown from his dragon's back and he flew head-first into a wooden mast. The last thing he saw before he lost consciousness was the swirling face of the ship's commander smiling down at him…

 **Author's Note 2.0:** Thank you all so much for your follows and favorites and for the wonderful few who took the time to write me a brief review. Ultimately, you were responsible for me finally coming back to this story. Well, that and the new season of Race to the Edge : D! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It's the first time I have ever written a battle scene or tried to come up with air/sea battle strategies, so I hope I did ok. Let me know what you think! And I will do my best to not leave you hanging on this cliff for too long…


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